Topic > Review of “I’m Being Followed” by Alexis C. Madrigal

“I’m Being Followed” by Alexis C. Madrigal explores the unknown world of data collection through navigation. By visiting various sites every day, each click increases a person's vulnerability to having their personal information collected and used in ways that have yet to be discovered. Madrigal supports his claim of invasion of privacy by using first-hand experiences, stories, logos and evidence from credible sources, to emphasize the numerous possible effects that companies can involve in tracking people online. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Nowadays, everything we do online, whether it's watching cat videos or shopping, is recorded on a network of databases. The personal information collected, as Madrigal claims, is used by companies targeting ads where "you are statistically more likely to click (Madrigal, I'm Being Followed)." Companies make money with advertising geared to consumer desires, however it is not yet known whether this is a harmful or harmless phenomenon, since we do not know what will happen with what is collected. Madrigal's previous statements lead the audience to think deeply; what if the data collected leads the world to ruin, perhaps another world war? What if the data collected brought peace to the world, as it could solve potential crimes? It is obvious that people are to some extent aware that they are being monitored online, however they tend to ignore the possible dangers that this monitoring could lead to. Madrigal discussed what's on the other side of the screen, educating his audience on what's behind that ad that appears right after they think about exactly what they're advertising. He talked about the numerous companies that monitored his actions on the Internet, such as "Adnetik" and "AdRoll", showing his audience that he also goes through these things. So, for the skeptics out there who need to wake up, list the site he used to find out which companies tracked him; "Collusion." As a result, Madrigal states that "policies established to improve how often people click on advertisements may end up determining who you are when you are viewed by a bank or a romantic partner, or by a retailer selling shoes (Madrigal , I'm Being Followed. )” In this case, he is warning his audience to stay aware of the sites he visits, because unknowingly, people tend to create many “social markers” of someone online; audience to the potential risks of being prey to the Internet, his selective writing style has had its effects. For starters, Madrigal's choice of words made the text easy to follow, making it understandable to a wider audience diction, he managed to achieve a friendly dialect, creating a less stressful atmosphere for a serious topic; making it almost as if he was telling a story. He also adds humor to the beginning of his text while creating a browser-opening scenario and, in in the blink of an eye, “the data from this single visit was sent to 10 different companies (Madrigal, I'm Being Followed).” Like its title, it has an almost sarcastic tone, making it seem normal that 104 companies are tracking millions of people on the web. In addition to word choice, sometimes people don't know how to process their feelings towards certain topics, so from that, the feeling of being watched online, as Madrigal mentions, people tend to describe it as